Examine Your Commercial Property with High-Quality ALT/ACSM Survey Standards

Information may not be reliable

Decisions regarding commercial property must be made with careful consideration and study to avoid costly mistakes. For this reason, discerning property owners hire land surveyors to conduct an ALTA/ACSM survey before they do anything on the land. ALT/ACSM survey standards are accredited land title surveys that must be conducted only by approved survey corporations in the US. They are specifically designed for commercial purposes, with a uniform set of standard code, which surveyors follow for construction purposes. A reputable land surveying team should be able to meet all the standards set by authorized institutions (i.e. the American Land Title Association) and the government in order to be credible enough to provide the ALTA/ACSM survey. 

ALT/ACSM survey standards should be met by the survey team to fulfill a procedure of due diligence. When done properly, the results should provide information on setback requirements, country zoning laws, and the property’s height requirement. All survey methods must comply with the guidance set for surveyors. That way, the results will be reliable to insurance companies when they are required as documentation proofs or for securities and claims. The information will be helpful to lenders and purchases when they need to evaluate the property and land for potential risks, and when they need to determine the benefits of owning that property. 

You may find ALTA/ACSM surveys to be a bit more costly than traditional mapping and contouring surveys, but they are more precise, faster, accurate, and provide more details, which will be crucial to your decision-making. There are many other applications for ALT/ACSM survey standards. The survey can provide information on property easements and boundaries, and give suggestions that can improve the land, such as trails, fences, rights of ways, and roads. 

An ALTA/ACSM survey may reveal information on certain features of the property that may determine or affect ownership, as well as information that may require further investigation, especially when it pertains to adverse rights. Survey results may show easements and improvements, encumbrances, ownership areas, property boundaries, and other critical factors that may influence land ownership. The surveying company follows specific ALT/ACSM survey standards to ensure accuracy in those results. 

About the Author:

Armando Dupont, a professional land surveyor, started his career in surveying in 1977 and has extensive experience in managing personnel and projects. His experience includes: topographic mapping, boundary surveys and analysis, construction and control surveying, preparation of tract and parcel maps, earth work calculation and quantities, targeting and control for photogrammetric, and land title surveys in accordance with the American Land Title Association and the American Congress on Surveying and Mapping. Mr. DuPont founded Calvada Surveying, Inc. in 1989 and is a licensed Professional Land Surveyor in the State of California.